It is common for engineers to be inspired by nature. Now, researchers say we could be in a revolution in Paleo-Biomimética, using old creatures designs to inform how we can design and build structures today.
It is not surprising to imagine that flying machines can be inspired by animals that have become and become competent aerial specialists, such as birds.
But research published In the newspaper Scientific reports It suggests that microstructures within the bones of larger flying animals, pterosaurs, could maintain the key to developing lighter and strongest materials for the next generation of airplanes.
It makes sense. Some pterosaurs, such as QuetzalcoatlusThey were massive, reaching magnitude of more than 10 m, which makes them the same size as small airplanes.
Scientists have baffled a lot about how these gigantic creatures taken away.
A key to the success of the pterosaurs seems to be in their bones. The researchers used advanced X -ray images to reveal a complex network of microscopic channels in the fossilized bones of the pterosaurs. These details had never been seen before.
“We are very excited to find and assign these microscopic interlocking structures in the pterosour Seguros, “says principal author Nathan Pili, a doctoral student at Manchester University in the United Kingdom.
The pterosaurs ruled the heavens during the reign of dinosaurs, although they were not dinosaurs. They are not birds.
These giant flying creatures were the first vertebrates to take the air. The pterosaurs became extinct in the mass extinction event 66 million years ago, which saw the extinction of non -avios dinosaurs.
The disappearance of the pterosaurs opened the heavens to be taken by the heirs of the dinosaurs: the birds.
Pterosouri wings understood a thin membrane between the feet and a fifth elongated finger in the arm. The small channels, each approximately 20 times smaller than the width of a human hair, would have been used for nutrient transfer, growth and maintenance in the bone. They would also have protected against microfractures diverting cracks.
“This is an incredible field of research, especially when working on a microscopic scale,” adds Pili. “Of all the species that have lived, most are extinct, although many were extinguished due to the rapid environmental changes instead of a” poor design. ” These findings are pressing our team to generate even higher resolution scans of additional extinct species. Who knows what hidden solutions we could find!
“There are more than four billion years of experimental design that were a function of Darwinian natural selection,” says Senior Phil Manning author, also from Manchester University.
“These natural solutions are beautifully reflected by the same iterative processes used by engineers to refine the materials. It is very likely that among the billions of life permutations on Earth, the unique engineering solutions have evolved but have lost themselves in the sands of time. We hope to unlock the potential of old natural solutions to create new materials, but also help build a more sustainable future. It is wonderful that life in the Jurassic can make flying in the 21st century more efficient and safer. “
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